


What a Night

by legendaryroar



Series: James and Keith Week 2018 [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: First Kiss, Galaxy Garrison, M/M, Stargazing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-11
Updated: 2018-09-11
Packaged: 2019-07-11 00:51:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15961184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/legendaryroar/pseuds/legendaryroar
Summary: James likes to go up to the roof when he can't sleep. Keith does the same.





	What a Night

**Author's Note:**

> For James and Keith Week Day 2 - ~~Dreams~~ / **Nightmares** / ~~Fantasies~~.

“That’s just stupid,” Keith mutters, eyes still fixed on the stars.

James frowns. “Do you have to be an asshole about everything?” he asks, shifting his foot until he kicks Keith’s ankle. They’re lying side by side, too close to make it more than a firm nudge, but the intention is still there.

“You’re seriously so afraid of getting kicked out that you have nightmares about it?” Keith laughs, kicking him back. “You need some hobbies.”

“Hypocrite. I bet your nightmare was about being unable to fly anymore,” James says, turning and looking at Keith’s profile.

There are only a few lights active on the roof at this time of night, but the nearest one is close enough that he can see Keith clearly. It’s not the first night they’ve found each other on the roof after bad dreams, but it’s one of the rare nights Keith doesn’t look ready to bolt at any moment. He did the first few times, but now he’s lying there as if he could fall asleep again.

It makes no sense after they were reprimanded again just several hours ago for fighting. Keith started it, but here he is, relaxed and calm.

They never fight up here, no matter what they say to each other.

“There are things out there that are worse than not being able to fly,” Keith murmurs, his expression contorting for a moment.

James waits, but Keith doesn’t say anything further. It only takes the barest movement for James to knock the back of their hands together. “That it?” he prompts. “You never talk about your own nightmares.”

Keith knocks him right back. “I’m not an oversharer like you.”

Is he oversharing? Probably. James frowns up at the sky. With the way they are all day every day, he shouldn’t be so open with Keith. They are supposed to be rivals, they have been since first meeting years ago in school. But somehow, it’s different now. Keith had never expressed an interest in space or flying in school. It was only after Shiro singled him out that he seemed interested.

How long had Keith been harbouring an interest before letting anyone know? Had he even been interested before? He’s always been so hard to read.

But now? Now they were both moving towards the same goals, sharing the same interests, and James just couldn’t stop thinking about it, wondering if they could have been friends all along. Wondering if they can even be friends now.

“Maybe I want to know,” he says. “Maybe I want to know more about you.”

Keith doesn’t reply for a while, and James’ cheeks grow hot. That sounded very different out loud than it did in his head.

“Just because you tell me about your nightmares doesn’t mean I’m obligated to share mine,” Keith finally says, his tone sharp.

James doesn’t need to look at him to know he’s gone tense. “I didn’t say you had to,” he mutters.

The silence that follows is tense, and then Keith shifts. James tenses, but stays where he is with his eyes fixed on the night sky. If Keith wants to run off, he’s not going to try and stop him. It’s probably for the best anyway, so he doesn’t end up saying something else embarrassing and a little too revealing.

But the night sky is suddenly interrupted by Keith’s face hovering over him. Propped up on an elbow, Keith is leaning over him with an unreadable expression. He seems to study him.

“What do you want from me?” he finally asks, his eyebrows drawn together in a frown that looks more lost than angry.

James can feel his pulse start to race. He’s been asking himself that for months. He’s also been ignoring the most obvious answer for months. He could lie, say something stupid like team building, but Keith has always had an uncanny ability to know when people are lying to him.

“I don’t know,” he admits. It’s easier to be honest up here on the roof. Just like it’s been so easy to lay there and tell Keith about his nightmares, even though he always expects Keith to throw them at him when they fight. He never does.

He hasn’t stopped coming up to the roof on the nights he can’t sleep either. Even if he walked away the first few times he realised James was there too.

“How helpful,” Keith mutters, frowning down at him.

“Well, what do you want from me?” James counters. “I don’t make you come up here. No one can make you do anything you don’t want to.”

Keith’s eyes lower, just for a moment, but James catches it. He holds his breath for a moment, trying to figure out if he imaged it. But then it happens again, Keith’s gaze shifts to his mouth, lingers a little longer, then raises to meet his own again. It’s too dark to know for sure, but it almost looks like Keith’s cheeks are darkening.

It’s definitely quiet enough to notice how Keith’s breathing seems to increase and keep pace with his own. Faster and louder than it should be.

Every reason that he’s been ignoring for his fixation on Keith rushes to the forefront of his mind. Nightmares bring him to the rooftop a few nights a week, but dreams of Keith keep him cowering under his covers from embarrassment and longing the remaining nights. But if Keith...

Braving a potential fist to his face, James reaches up slowly, lets Keith see his hand coming, before gently cupping the side of his face. Keith doesn’t move, but his breathing hitches. His gaze lowers to James’ lips again.

James doesn’t know what to do. Should he lean up? Pull Keith down? Wait? Say something?

Keith meets his gaze again, his brows furrowing a little. James brushes his cheek with his thumb, wondering what the hell to do and whether this is even something that should happen. They’re volatile enough already without _this_.  This is anything but a good idea. But at the same time, up here on the roof in the middle of the night, anything seems possible, and everything seems easy.

Keith leans down a little, and then stops, like he’s checking James’ reaction. He won’t find anything there. James feels frozen, too scared to move in case he scares Keith off. He’d hold his breath, but his breathing is too fast, like he’s gasping for air and unable to stop.

When Keith moves closer again, all James can feel is the warmth of his breath. He’s painfully aware of just how little distance separates them.  But Keith stops again, and James wants to close the distance himself but he just knows that’s the worst thing he could do right now. Keith  i s always read y to turn around and walk away. The only reason their arguments even turn into fights is because James can’t stop himself from baiting him. Knowing exactly what to say to get him to turn back around and keep  fighting .

As Keith hovers there, he can feel that urge. To say something.

It’s a terrible idea, but he’s already doing it.

“I’ve dreamed about this too,” he whispers, his own words bringing a burning heat to his cheeks.

Oversharing again. Shit, he really is an oversharer. There is just something about Keith, and something about being alone on the rooftop in the dead of night that just makes him want to talk.

“Yeah?” Keith breathes.

“Yeah,” James replies.

That seems to be what Keith needed to hear, as he closes the distance and their lips touch. It’s just a moment, just a gentle press, and then Keith leans back. His cheeks are definitely darker, and his lips are parted as he breathes heavily, as if he’s been running. He looks moments away from running, in fact.

“Don’t run off,” James says without thinking, sliding his hand from Keith’s cheek to the back of his neck. He tugs gently, not enough to pull Keith back down, but enough that it should be obvious what he wants.

Keith looks him in the eye, and the intensity makes James shiver. But he leans down again, their lips pressing softly. James curls his hand into the hair at the base of Keith’s neck and presses up a little. Keith breaks away and looks at his lips, his breathing loud and harsh.

“Is this what you want from me?” he asks breathlessly, shifting his gaze back up to meet James’.

“Yes,” James breathes. “If you...do you want this from me?”

Keith snorts, sending a gust of warm air over James’ face. It makes him shiver.

“I’m kissing you, aren’t I?”

James can’t help himself. “Are you?” he asks, raising an eyebrow and tugging gently at the handful of hair he has  in his grasp .

Keith looks surprised, then his expression shifts into a glare.  But he leans down again, with enough pressure to push James back against the rooftop. He catches James with his mouth open, and their lips press and slide. 

James makes a low sound in his throat, pressing up, kissing back with just as much urgency as Keith now has. How many times has he dreamed of this? This and so much more, but he can’t even think past this. Past the press and slide of Keith’s lips. The heat of his breath puffing against his cheek, so fast, so loud. Keith’s hair tickles his face as he leans over him and presses him down again.

It seems like forever before they part again, gasping and still so close they’re sharing air. James is so dizzy he can’t figure out what to do next. He just doesn’t want to stop. He surges up, catching Keith’s lips again, startling a soft sound out of him. Then he moves, turning, pressing Keith back until he’s hovering over him, one hand brace d by his head on the roof, the other trapped between the roof and the nape of Keith’s neck.

Keith’s hands grip at his sides, almost painfully tight.  James pulls back, but Keith just leans up to keep kissing him,  all open mouthed and hot.  James shifts his hand from Keith’s neck to cup his face. Keith’s skin i s hot beneath his hand, almost burning. He wants to trace it down and see how far that flush goes.

Instead, he breaks away and then presses his cheek to Keith’s. He feels like he’s feverish, body hot and heart racing like he’s been running sprints. Exhilarated like he’s been in pulling stunts in the sim ulator s. He wonders if Keith feels the same, but doesn’t want to ask. Keith’s not that into sharing things about himself and the last thing James wants  is to set them back after th is . Whatever  _th_ _is_ means.

“We should stop now,” he says.

Keith goes rigid under him, and James pulls back in time to see his open, flushed expression go blank.

“Not because... _no_ ,” he rushes, wanting to hit himself. “Shit, Keith. We’re on the roof! Anyone could come up here and...”

See them kissing. Kissing and...he’d been thinking about touching. Shit. The moment anyone knows about this and says something where Keith can hear it will be the day it ends. If it even happens again at all. Keith is just so damn flighty. So easily spooked for someone so tough and determined.

Keith pushes him away and James lets him. He doesn’t leave, he just sits up and runs a hand through his hair, looking like he’s trying catch his breath.

“Keith...”

Shit, he doesn’t know what to say. What is there to say? That he hopes they can do this again? He’s not saying that. He already says too much with Keith while Keith gives away nothing in return.

With an audible sigh, Keith gets to his feet. James scrambles to follow him and Keith tenses. It’s on the tip of James’ tongue.

_What was that? What is this? Will it happen again? Will you come back to the roof again?_

He’s been pushing all this away for so long, but it’s now hitting him all in a big rush. He wants Keith so badly he aches. Now that he’s seen him look so open, that tense expression he’s wearing now makes his stomach sink.

“I’m still going to kick your ass in the simulators tomorrow,” Keith says, raising his chin and looking defiant, like he’s daring James to say otherwise.

As if  _this_ could change  _that_ .

“Tell me something I don’t know,” James mutters. He talks a big game in front of the others, but he knows the odds of beating Keith only decrease every day. Maybe he could have beaten his score before Keith started working on his natural talent, but not now.

Keith studies him for a moment, and then his posture relaxes. “They’re not going to kick you out,” he says.

“What?”

“Your nightmare,” Keith explains, looking away, his cheeks darkening again. “Your other grades are too high, and you follow orders like a perfect little soldier. They won’t kick you out.”

James blinks over at him. Keith is...reassuring him? Keith seems to realise this at the same time, and turns away, heading for the roof access.

“So don’t be so stupid,” he says as he leaves.

Instead of calling out something in return like he sorely wants to, James bites his lip and lets Keith leave. The ground still feels unsteady under his feet, and he can bury his pride for the momen t. 

When he reaches the roof access, Keith pauses. He stands there for a few moments, and then his posture goes rigid again.

“I have nightmares every night,” he says, just loudly enough carry.

It takes a moment to sink in, to look past the surface and realise what he’s saying. Keith doesn’t share things like that. He never has. So if he is now, there must be a reason.

“I’ll see you tomorrow night then,” James replies, his pulse racing again.

Keith lingers for a moment longer, then leaves without looking back. James sits back down, and then flops onto his back, staring up at the stars.

After a moment, he brings his fingers to his lips.

What a night.

**Author's Note:**

> It only barely fits the prompt with that teeny talk of nightmares, but there's also a little mention of dreams in there so hopefully it's all okay XD 
> 
> You can find me at [legendaryroar](http://legendaryroar.tumblr.com) on tumblr.


End file.
